Mewberculosis: Medical first as cats are found to pass TB on to their owners

Two pet owners have caught tuberculosis from their cats in a medical first (Picture: Alamy)

Two pet owners have caught tuberculosis from their cats in the first cases of their kind in the world.

They were found to be infected by the potentially deadly lung disease after the bacterium was detected in nine cats from different homes in Berkshire and Hampshire.

The patients, both adults who had come into ‘close contact’ with cats, were said to be ‘responding to treatment’.

Their cases are the first ever recorded of feline to human transmission of the disease.

Cat owners are being warned to seek medical advice if they think their pet may be infected.

Mike Mandelbaum, of the charity TB Alert, said: ‘As a nation of cat lovers, this may be quite shocking for people, who may now look at their pets in a different light.

‘While the risk of catching TB from a cat is likely to stay very low, this is a stark reminder that TB remains a problem in the UK today.’ The cases emerged after vets in the two counties discovered mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis) in nine cats between December 2012 and April 2013.

As a result, 39 people were offered TB screening and 24 accepted. As well as the two active infections, another two people were found to have latent TB – where they were exposed to the disease but did not have any symptoms.

Public Health England concluded: ‘Transmission from an infected cat is the likely source of infection for these two individuals’.

The infection is likely spread by breathing in or swallowing the bacteria, or through an open wound.

Dr Dilys Morgan, of PHE, said: ‘We recommend that household and close contacts of cats with confirmed M. bovis should be assessed and receive public health advice.’